The Executive Director of Peace Watch Ghana, Nyonkopa Daniels, has criticised the Majority Caucus and some NDC MPs for demanding the annulment of the Ayawaso East parliamentary primary over allegations of vote-buying.
Daniels argued that lawmakers calling for the cancellation of the results on grounds of inducement are being disingenuous, suggesting they cannot convincingly claim to have never offered incentives during their own campaigns.
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, she asserted that the position taken by these MPs appears hypocritical and demonstrates a lack of genuine commitment to electoral reform. To prove their sincerity, she challenged any MP calling for the annulment to resign their own seat so that fresh elections could be conducted across the board.
In her conversation with host Kwabena Agyapong, she suggested that Baba Jamal is being unfairly singled out as a scapegoat, despite other candidates allegedly engaging in similar practices.
“Was Baba Jamal the only one who shared items? Was he the only one holding a position? Did we not see others share motorbikes, money, and other items? What level of hypocrisy is this?
“If the MPs want the results annulled, then they should resign. Can they swear that before we elected them they did not pay money? They should stop the hypocrisy,” she said.
Daniels urged stakeholders to find a lasting solution to the “canker” of vote-buying rather than targeting individuals.
She also addressed the controversial trend of widows contesting their late husbands’ seats.
She reminded listeners of the NDC’s past criticism of the NPP during the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election, when the term “bloody widow” was infamously used. She expressed concern that if the trend continues, more spouses may feel pressured to enter Parliament solely following the death of their husbands.
“When the NPP was doing this, the NDC complained, and yet today, the NDC is doing the same thing. If care is not taken, we will have more wives of MPs forcing their way into Parliament should their husbands die,” she cautioned.
